At Five in the Afternoon

The movie title, and one of its main axis, comes after a fragment of a poem written by Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca, called 'Llanto por la muerte de Ignacio Sánchez Mejías', dedicated to the death in 1934 of a Spanish Torero.

This poem is often seen as a premonition of Garcia Lorca's own dead, near Fuente Grande, and of the Civil War that was soon to desolate Spain.

Samira Makhmalbaf comes again with an anguishing tale of a woman that wants to believe in the role of women in a modern society while her own family is disintegrating around her.

Was not the sanction against Taliban led by the US to bring dawn into Afghanistan? Noqreh goes back and forth between her father, who believes neither education nor jobs are necessary for women, and the school, where teachers encourage female students to have any job, even the president.

Her family generously offers the place they live to the refugees coming back from Pakistan. Soon they have to go out from there, and without food, the dream of becoming the president fades out. Her white shoes become useless.

It seems the whole of the movie is a poem. That a high school girl dreams to become the president is a poem too. Maybe it is the best way to describe the world Noqreh lives in, which is at five in the afternoon, not in the morning.

How can the country, where just seeing the face of woman is sin, be open to the world? The country which was destroyed and lagged a long way behind the world by men, who are taught as superior creatures than women. Only the belief that God never dies supports them. Tough I have my belief as a Christian, I never want to shut myself away into the world of illusion.

Having loved 'The Apple' I was very much looking forward to seeing this, and though it has some very sad and beautiful moments as a whole I thought it lacked a sense of purpose. Having just seen the marvellous 'Osama', although perhaps a little unfair to compare it, that was more straight forward and had a far more emotional pull. The director does get amazing performances from the non-acting cast but occasionally the lack of experience does tell and you sense their just repeating what they've been told to say without really knowing why. It also felt a bit too long and would have been better without some scenes which were too similar to others. Not as good a film as 'The Apple' but worth seeing as there are some nice moments and it still manages to have a sense of humour despite the obvious terrible hardship these people have endured. (6/10)

In a devastated Afghanistan post-Taliban, Nogreh is a woman that goes to a school without the knowledge of her conservative father that sees blasphemy everywhere. She dreams on becoming President of Afghanistan, but wears burqa and fears her father; she is interested to know whether there are other women presidents further to the Pakistani prime-minister Benazir Bhutto; and she wants to know their speeches to be elected president. Nogreh wanders with her father and her sister-in-law Leylomah with her baby in a buggy with their old horse. Leylomah is seeking-out her missing husband Akhtar and has problem to feed her baby due to her own starvation. Along their travel for survival, they see their country devastated by war and misery.

"Panj É Asr" is a very sad tour though Afghanistan, a country devastated by the civil war, the successive invasions and war against Russians and Americans and the Taliban regime since the 70's. It is impressive to see only ruins of former cities and palaces, and the poor and illiterate people dying without food or water. The ignorance of the common people and the treatment to the women are also amazing. This movie is a sort of documentary and despite the lack of resources and the flawed screenplay, the director Samira Makhmalbaf has the merit of exposing these wounds to the world. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Às Cinco da Tarde" ("At Five in the Afternoon")

This movie tugged at my heartstrings delivering an unforgettable portrayal of Afghan life. It's a 10 out of 10, poetically revealing modern life in a city relegated to Neanderthal living conditions after the Taliban was sent packing.

The Film's title is the title of an extraordinarily relevant poem, recited twice during the film.

Though a tough way to learn Farsi (it's subtitled - phew!) "At Five in the Afternoon" awakened me to the plight of the poor souls coping with the rubble and 19th century technology.

The film describes (teenaged) Noqreh's life as she attends school and struggles to discover her role in society now that "any" job is within her reach. She decides to become the country's President.

The zesalots may be gone ... but there's plenty of cranky, old, conservative men (her father among them) who long for the "good ole'days". The country's problems (among them: live buried mines, religious extremism, the absence of basic social commodities - water / education - after several wars) serve as the antagonist as Noqreh's father carts her and her extended family across the Afghan dustbowl in search of her brother, The film moves slowly and deliberately, but I guarantee you'll be paid for your time investment with a once in a lifetime education about Afghanistan.

I hope you find a copy or a showing, and allocate the 2 hours to let it wash over you and take hold.